Mechanical parts of equipment require periodic servicing to ensure reliable performance and longevity. One set of such equipment are final drives or planetary gears. Final drives are found on tractors, bulldozers and other heavy equipment. They are a series of gears enclosed in a case in which power from the transmission or hydrostatic motors transfer torque to the drive wheels or tracks of heavy equipment. The final drive can be a torque multiplier used to handle large torque forces. As a result, these gears must be lubricated at all times using specific amounts of fluid according to manufacturer recommendations. Thus to ensure the proper functioning of the final drive regular servicing is required, which further entails checking the fluid levels, sampling, changing and filling the final drive with lubricating fluid.
Usually, the manufacturer places a marker e.g. a visible line on the final drive of the wheel indicating where the optimal fluid level should be. Generally, the manufacturer's marker is horizontal to the ground when viewed with the wheel mounted in an upright position. For several final drives, this marker is at half way across the final drive or at a position lower than half way across the final drive. In certain heavy equipment, which may require more lubricating fluids, the marker may be at the three-quarter mark across the final drive. Thus, when the final drive is being serviced, there exists a need to have the wheel properly rotated to the exact position in perfect alignment with the manufacturer's marker. In certain instances, that desired position is where the manufacturer's marker is perfectly horizontal to the ground so that the fluid levels can be checked or otherwise serviced.
Such servicing of final drives entails the correct positioning of the wheels on which they are located. Because of the servicing requirements for the final drive system, the frequency of servicing and the necessity for precision, the machine or heavy equipment would have to be moved multiple times until it is in the correct or optimal position for servicing. This process usually requires at least one mechanic observing the position of the equipment being serviced to ensure that the final drive is in its desired or optimal position while another mechanic moves the equipment backwards and/or forward until the wheel is properly rotated to the desired position. Alternatively, a mechanic may single-handedly service the equipment but it will require multiple entrances and exits to and from the equipment's cab as he or she verifies that the optimal position has been achieved. This results in wasted time, inefficiency, decreased productivity and safety because of the trial and error nature of positioning the machine or equipment. This also presents a safety concern as there are more opportunities for accidents with the constant entering and exiting of the equipment's cab. Thus there exists a need to improve the efficiency and safety of the mechanics servicing the equipment or parts thereof. Similarly, there exists a need to determine with accuracy and precision when the desired optimal servicing position of the equipment, or parts thereof, is achieved or attained.
The new system and apparatus as embodied by the present invention eliminates the need for a mechanic to repeatedly exit a vehicle to gauge the position of the final drives before servicing them. Similarly, the present invention eliminates the need for additional manual assistance in determining the proper position for servicing the equipment. A mechanic using the system and apparatus of the present invention will no longer need to repeatedly exit and enter the equipment's cab in order to verify the correct position of the final drives. The mechanic will be able to unilaterally determine when the wheel being serviced is in the desired position without having to exit the equipment's cab. The system and apparatus envisioned in the present invention will thus increase productivity and safety. In addition, the system and apparatus envisioned in this invention will increase the accuracy of the desired position of the final drive. It should be noted that the system and apparatus envisioned in this invention may also be used for other equipment parts that require certain positioning for servicing or other activities and that the discussion of final drives was solely illustrative.